Lasting Forever Means Nothing Without You
by WildRelapsedCreature
Summary: Maeve and Ainsley are warriors, known to all of Britainnia as the Nightmare Twins. Sworn to protect Princess Elizabeth, they embark on a quest with the Princess. Once running into the Sins however, Ainsley and Maeve's pasts can no longer be kept a secret.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Seven Deadly Sins or any of its characters. I only own Maeve and Ainsley. Any of the story line that seems familiar, I most likely do not own.**

 _"Princess we must leave! Now!" a woman in deep purple and silver armor pleaded with Princess Elizabeth, just trying to follow her King's wishes._

 _"Father, I can't leave you! I can't go alone! You have to come with me!" Elizabeth cried._

 _"You won't be alone. Maeve and Ainsley will go with you. You know I must stay here."_

 _"Father."_

 _"Elizabeth! We must go!" Maeve, the warrior in the purple and silver armor, grabbed her wrist, all formalities put aside._

 _The other warrior in the room, Ainsley, in her blue and silver armor gave up on trying to barricade the door._

 _"It's not going to hold up much longer!" Ainsley fretted, running back to Maeve and Princess Elizabeth._

 _The throne room door was being attacked with full force as Maeve dragged the Princess to the secret passage in the throne room, Ainsley hot on her heels. Elizabeth watched from a crack in the door as the throne room door was finally broken down. Teary eyed, she shut the door completely._

 _"Come, my princess. We must leave quickly." Maeve whispered._

 _Maeve, Ainsley, and Princess Elizabeth made their way through the passage._

 _"Princess, we must find a disguise for you." Ainsley announced when the three girls were far enough from the throne room._

 _"What do you mean?" the Princess asked._

 _"Once the Holy Knights realize you're not there, they're going to look for you. If you're walking around in your dress, we'll be spotted instantly." Maeve explained._

 _"Oh. I guess you're right. Okay."_

Sweat coated Maeve's body as she shot up from the bed in the Inn that both her and Ainsley had resided in. Maeve couldn't sleep well. Never since the day she and Ainsley had to leave the Princess behind. Elizabeth's father had trusted them to protect her, but they had leave her behind, protecting her from the Holy Knights came first and foremost. Always. It was Ainsley and Maeve's main task, their promise. After they had instructed her to leave, the Holy Knight, Gilthunder, and the two warriors battled it out. Left horribly injured, the two girls were unable to follow the Princess. Their only hope at this point was to find her. Hopefully uninjured.

The sun had just began to rise over the horizon. Yawning, Maeve pulled herself out of bed and began to put on her combat boots and leather jacket. Ainsley was tossing and turning in the twin bed on the other side of the room. Neither girl slept very well, even before they lost the Princess. Sleep just wasn't something that came easily to either of them anymore. At least the lack of sleep meant they got an early start every day. Throwing her rucksack over her shoulder, Maeve reached over to Ainsley to shake her awake.

Ainsley woke with a start, rolling out of her bed and falling in a heap on the floor.

"Wha?" she groggily mumbled, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"Come on Ains, we've got a long day ahead of us." Maeve informed her comrade.

Ainsley sighed, but pulled herself up and off of the floor. Once she was ready, the pair turned to leave their rented room to head back out onto the road. The sooner they found the Princess, the better.

As Maeve and Ainsley continued their trek along the rocky road, thoughts continued to swarm both of their heads. Most were old memories that they just couldn't push out of their minds. Unbeknownst to each other, they both quickly got lost in old memories.

 _"Lady Maeve! Lady Ainsley!"_

 _"Princess? Are you_ _alright?_ " _Maeve dashed into the Princess's room, Ainsley right behind her._

 _"Look!"_

 _A younger Princess Elizabeth held out her hands to show the warriors a sloppy, but cute, flower crown._

 _"Very well done Beth! You'll be making them in no time at this rate!" Ainsley praised, a gentle smile on her face._

 _"Yeah. But its not as pretty as the ones you both can make." the little girl sighed, crestfallen._

 _"That's because we've been making them for years now. You know this. You'll get better. I promise."_

Both girls let small smiles slip onto their faces from the memory. Princess Elizabeth had been in Ainsley and Maeve's charge since they had been found by the King, what seemed so long ago.

But they should know how forever feels like.

That truly wasn't that long ago.

Haunting memories started to snake their way into Maeve's brain. Maeve growled under her breath, Ainsley slightly turning her head in question to the sound. Maeve didn't need this. Shaking her head, she fully focused on the path ahead of her, and saw the coming village.

"Finally. Bernia Village." Maeve sighed in relief.

"No kidding." Ainsley's face lit up a bit as the sight of their destination.

The two made their way into the village square, just in time to see a geyser of water erupt into the air.

 _Strange._ Ainsley thought, Maeve having a similar picture.

It was then that Ainsley saw the silver hair flash on the other side of town.

"Maeve." Ainsley's eyes widened, "I know only one person with that exact shade of hair." she finished, pointing in the direction she was looking.

"Princess Elizabeth?" Maeve whispered in awe.

Even though they was on the other side of town, and there was no way she could've heard Maeve speak, they saw her turn.

"Elizabeth!" Ainsley raised her voice.

Her head swiveled in the warriors's direction. They saw the recognition flash in her eyes.

"Maeve! Ainsley!"

The three ran towards each other, dodging people as they collided into a three way hug. The Princess was teary eyed as she gripped the two's shoulders.

"I'm so happy you're alive Princess." Ainsley murmured in relief.

"You and me both Ains." Maeve added.

"I thought I'd never see you guys again." Princess Elizabeth sobbed.

Maeve stroked her hair to calm her down as Ainsley rubbed comforting circles on her back. Her cries subsided as she pulled back to scrub her eyes.

"How'd you get here?"

"We walked." Maeve answered sarcastically.

"Well, I assumed that."

"We've been searching for you ever since we were separated that day." Ainsley began.

"We made both you and your father a promise that we intend to keep." Maeve finished.

"Thank you." Princess Elizabeth was still teary eyed when she said that, "Oh, Lady Maeve! Lady Ainsley! There's someone you must meet!"

Princess Elizabeth grabbed the two's arms and started to pull them over to the side of town she had been standing at. When Maeve and Ainsley turned in the direction she was facing, they saw a familiar head of blonde hair. Both of their eyes widened.

"Meliodas?" they gasped in surprise.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Seven Deadly Sins or any of its characters. I only own Maeve and Ainsley. Any of the storyline that seems familiar, I most likely do not own.**

The Princess looked at Ainsley and Maeve in confusion.

"Lady Maeve? Lady Ainsley? Do you both know Sir Meliodas?" she asked, confused.

Ainsley and Maeve warily glanced at each other. Meliodas looked at the two with a curious expression in his eyes.

"Sorry, but I don't recognize either of you," Meliodas announced.

"No. You wouldn't." Maeve sighed.

"We should probably explain," Ainsley quipped, noting how both Meliodas and Princess Elizabeth still had looks of confusion on their faces.

"Yes, I agree. But first, we need to go somewhere other than the town square. Some place where we won't be seen."

"We can talk in my tavern." Meliodas offered.

Meliodas and Princess Elizabeth led the way back to the Boar Hat; Meliodas's tavern.

"We're not who we say we are." Ainsley began.

"Well, our names are. But that's about it. Meliodas, although you don't remember our faces, you do know us. These aren't our true faces." Maeve confessed.

After their conclusion, Ainsley snapped her fingers.

The once six feet and four inches tall and blue-haired Maeve shrunk down to five feet and ten inches with long black hair. Her eyes shifted from green to a greyish blue. Ainsley, once short and stout, but muscley grew to a height of five foot three inches. Her red hair changed to a vibrant shade of violet, while her eyes became a golden shade of brown. Princess Elizabeth gasped.

"You-you're the Nightmare Twins." she stuttered in disbelief.

"We're the same people you grew up with. We had to go into hiding. Just like how the Sins did. Elizabeth, we were raised as assassins. We had no choice." Ainsley pleaded, "Please, have we ever given you a reason to not trust us?"

"But why? Why the disguises?"

"Do you really think that the kingdom would welcome us with open arms? They knew for most of their pasts that we were assassins. Princess, we don't age. Our faces never naturally change. If the kingdom knew who we were, your life would've been in danger." Maeve furtherly explained.

Princess Elizabeth was stunned into silence. Neither Maeve nor Ainsley had an idea of what they should do. They had never discussed the idea of Elizabeth figuring out their true identities. Simply because the only people who could've known were in hiding. But good things never last, do they? Not in Ainsley and Maeve's worlds.

"I just, I don't understand." Elizabeth sputtered.

"We always truly cared about you. That wasn't a lie Elizabeth." Ainsley tried, "Think of it this way, if we had truly wanted to kill you, or we truly didn't care about you, we would've left a long time ago. You wouldn't be alive right now. You've heard the rumors, and most of them aren't too far from the truth."

"If I've come so far just to find the Seven Deadly Sins, the supposed evils of the kingdom, then who would I be to turn away the two who practically raised me?"

Ainsley and Maeve both looked relieved, neither of them wanted to lose the Princess as a friend.

"I believe we have much to discuss, you must have questions for us. Both of you must." Ainsley announced.

"Yes, we do." Meliodas piped up.

Ainsley and Maeve both nodded towards Meliodas.

"But, these are questions that can wait until later. Elizabeth is on a quest to find all of the Seven Deadly Sins."

Both Ainsley and Maeve froze, past memories flooding their brains. Both of their memories were slight differences but consisted of some of the same people.

"Lady Maeve? Lady Ainsley?" Elizabeth called, looking quite confused.

Maeve was shaken from her stupor first, "The Seven Deadly Sins you say? Why are you looking for them? No offense to you of course Meliodas."

"None taken!" Meliodas quipped.

"The kingdom isn't right. The Holy Knights have taken over the castle. My father sent me away. To find the Seven Deadly Sins. My father and I believe that they're the only ones who can save the kingdom and restore order."

Maeve and Ainsley both remained silent, lost in thought over Elizabeth's brief explanation.

"Well, you now have two more sets of eyes to help you with your search." Ainsley began.

Before Meliodas or Elizabeth could say anything, Maeve piped up, "Elizabeth, it has been our duty to keep you safe. Meliodas, we owe you our lives. We would be happy to be of service to you."

"That's great! Though, you'll have to be waitresses for me in the Boar Hat." Meliodas scratched his chin in thought, "I'm sure I have a uniform-"

"I refuse to wear such little fabric thanks." Maeve snapped, losing her cool exterior.

Meliodas raised his hands with an innocent smirk on his face.

Maeve and Ainsley both glared at the Captain of the Seven Deadly Sins. He just continued to look innocent.

"Stop looking so innocent. You know what you did." Maeve muttered.

Ainsley smacked Meliodas over the head before going to raid the bar. Maeve was close behind her. Maeve went hunting for alcohol while Ainsley began searching for food.

"If you're hungry, I can whip up something to eat." Meliodas offered.

"NO." Maeve and Ainsley yelled at the same time.

"I like my life thank you. I'd rather not die from food poisoning." Ainsley muttered.

"It's not that bad." Meliodas defended.

"No, you're right. It's not bad. It's fucking awful. Disgusting. Terrible. Need I go on?" Maeve snarked.

Meliodas didn't respond to her hostility. Elizabeth watched the exchange in confusion. She had no idea what kind of relationship the Nightmare Twins and the Seven Deadly Sins had, but she wasn't too sure how much she wanted to find out. It was clear that both Maeve and Ainsley were on edge. Maeve more so than her counterpart. But what Elizabeth couldn't figure out was why. She knew better than to outright ask. They would both become even more irritable if she did so. Elizabeth did decide on one thing right then and there though. She was going to figure out what was going on. She was going to figure it out no matter what she had to do.


End file.
